Night out
by The Darklight Angel
Summary: Lizzie, Maria, and the rest of their group are determined to make Natalya's and Serras' first date perfect, even if the two don't realize it!Next in the shoujoai chain.
1. The Plan

Night Out

* * *

Mkay, this is my next instalment in the Shoujo-ai chain. I hope that you'll all enjoy. Note, that this is set before Gale, Sage, Kay, or Alex, so yeah.

-

Disclaimer – I own Rayne, Lizzie, Trip, and Blaze. Xenolord owns Maria, Natalya, and Serras. Flame owns Shiro, and Armor. Flame and I own Felix and Faust. All others, we dont.

* * *

The sun shone down on the town of Battleon, bathing it in the morning light. The windows and assorted metal objects glittered brightly, most so the guardian tower. But that wasn't the case on the inside.

Although it was a beautifully bright day, there were still many torches, candles, and oil lamps placed around for light. It might have been hot outside, but the stone, and lack of natural light in some places, kept it wonderfully cool and dark inside.

Such as the case in one, rather large room. Although, the inside wasn't as cool as the rest of the building; probably due to the heat of the many bodies sitting around the room. Inside, were Rayne, Lizzie, Felix, Maria, Trip, Aria, Safiria, Shiro, Armor, Blaze, Faust, and many others. Blaze, Shiro, and Armor were sitting on a desk, with Armor leaning on the edge of it. Lizzie, Trip, Aria, and Felix were sitting on the ground, the small rug the only thing keeping them out of contact with the floor. All the rest, was either sitting on the many chairs placed around, leaning against walls, or sitting on the tile not touched by the rug. All, were staring at a single thing; a large, white, screen,

Slowly, a person walked in front of the screen, clad in full, specialized guardian armour, including cape. As they reached the middle, they turned, to face their audience. Clearing her throat, Maria Despair looked over them, and began to speak.

"Now, all of you have been called today, because you all have some sort of relationship, to either, or both, of these two." Maria stepped to the side, and with a small click, a slide of two people appeared, a slide of-

"Serras and Natalya." She stated. Holding Rayne's pointer, she held it at the ready. "As some of you may know, Serras has recently announced her…attraction, to my elder sister." She paused, to allow for polite applause, and for the fact to sink in, for the unaware. "But what most of you probably do not know is that tonight… is their very first date."

Murmurs arose throughout the room, but quieted immediately as Maria held up a hand.

"As the slides show…." Rayne, who was manning the slide reel, went through many slides, showing various shots of people in the room, interacting with Natalya, Serras, or both, "you all know them, as friends, as protectors, as equals."

Turning off the slide projector, Rayne snapped her fingers, and the enchanted, usually never ending flames (which had been quelled for the meeting) shot up in their place on that torches mounted on the walls.

"Which is why," She announced "Were all going to help them." Walking next to Maria, the two warriors stared long and hard at the crows. Timidly, one person raised their hand. The knight immediately spotted this, and nodded for the person to continue.

"How exactly are we going to help them?" He asked.

"Were going to make their date, the best first date ever." The green haired woman said confidently.

"Did they ask for our help?" Valencia asked.

"Well, no." Maria admitted. "But neither of them would, because they're too shy!" Everyone, seemed sceptic at this. Both the elder Despair sister, and the ex-mage, were both known for their boldness, and ability to speak out. "But I'm sure they'll appreciate what were going to do."

"So were going undercover for this mission." Rayne said, switching back to the original topic. "Mission?" Lizzie spoke up, looking up at Rayne with a questioning look. Rayne just shrugged.

"Now, we thre- I mean, asked Warlic to make us a spell, that should let us be able to keep in touch with one another," She said, as she motioned to the desk that Blaze, Shiro, and Armor were on. As they looked, they saw a large pile of small scrolls, unnoticed the whole time.

"Mind you, that these scrolls will wipe themselves blank by 8 AM tomorrow." Maria told them cheerfully, as it was obvious that people were thinking of other reasons to use the spell.

"A couple things before you'll be dismissed." Rayne said, now sounding as if she were running something for the military, instead of helping out two of her friends. "Keep the scrolls with you for the whole day. Later on, were going to contact you, and we'll all meet again here, to give everybody their roles, before we head out."

"And one more thing," Maria added in, before Rayne began to let everyone go.

"If anyone does not want to take part in this mission, raise your hand." Although she said this with the same professional, military tone as Rayne, her eyes didn't match it. There was a darker look, which gave proof that if anyone left, she would be furious.

The dark look lifted, and was replaced with one of masked glee and relief, as no one raised said body part. "You may go. Lizzie, stay here for a bit after everyone leaves, I have something I need you to do." She dismissed them, smiling. "And remember:" She pressed a finger to her lips.

"Not a word of this to them!"

-

Natalya paced around her room. It was a couple of hours until her date, and she was on the verge of a breakdown. She had a feeling that their date wouldn't go too well, due to her paranoia, and the fact that it seemed as if everybody was avoiding her. She sighed, and flopped down onto her bed. "Maybe I should just call it quits." She moaned out, to nobody in particular.

"Now, what kind of attitude is that?" Natalya turned over onto her stomach, to see Lizzie in the doorway. "Oh; it's you." She mumbled, right before she dropped her head onto the bedspread.

The redhead rolled her eyes. "Nice to see you too, Natalya." Calmly, she strolled into the room, and sat down next to the older woman. "You seem stressed."

"Stressed, is calling it lightly." She grunted, as she rolled onto her back. Lizzie nodded. "Okay then." Lizzie said slowly, with an arched eyebrow. "Mind telling me why you're stressed?" She asked innocently.

Natalya didn't say anything. She just grabbed her pillow, and held it to her head. Finally, she pressed it to her face.

"NighmphstdawiSers." She said quickly.

"First date jitters, huh?"

Natalya cursed inwardly. How the hell did she understand that? She had barely understood what she herself had said. Alas, all she could do was nod, and pull herself away from the pillow for some air.

"It's not just that." She mumbled. Natalya sat, stood, and began to pace around just like she was before. "It's the fact that I think everything might go wrong. I mean, what if we're suddenly called to fight? Or neither of us can make it? Or…." Natalya gasped, as her over active imagination, still affecting her after all those years, took over "Or, if Serras purposely doesn't show up?! If she ditches me, and she didn't really mean what she said!? Or if suddenly something happens to us, like an invasion or something, and one of us gets hurt?!" She turned abruptly, and faced Lizzie, her eyes widening with fear.

"A-and it's not just that! I'm not sure what we should do! Should we go to eat, or, or something else, I don't know!"

"And I don't know what to wear!" She wailed, throwing herself back on the bed, in hysterics, sobbing into Lizzie's lap.

"Uh…" Lizzie looked around in vain for help, but as she dreaded, there was none. She scratched the top of her head. If anyone had stumbled onto the scene, they would have laughed at the utter awkwardness.

Taking a deep breath, she put on her best smile at the moment, and patted her on the shoulder. "Err….don't worry, I'm sure Serras will show up." Why, oh WHY was it so hard to comfort Natalya? It was a habit of hers to comfort whoever was feeling down, and she usually could, but she'd never helped Nat before.

"And, um, your clothes are nice!" She tried, gesturing over her rumpled, messy, actually somewhat dirt covered (due to Trip accidently falling onto her).

"Don't lie to me!" Natalya yelped, muffled by the fabric of Lizzie's once dry pants. Lizzie winced, and sighed, scratching the nape of her neck gingerly. Scratching places around her head had become her new hobby in the last 5 minutes.

"Erm...look, Nat." She said. "You know what? I'll make sure that Serras goes. And, how about we clean you up, and get you dressed properly for tonight? I'll help you pick out an outfit?" She hadn't meant to make it sound like a question, but she was testing waters. While she would've instantly helped Rayne or Trip, or Maria, or whoever else, she wasn't so sure about Natalya. Although they had known each other for a while, she still didn't know much about her.

Natalya sniffled and nodded, pulling herself up, and rubbing at her eyes. A small smile appeared on Lizzie's face. "Let's see what we can do."

-

Serras walked over to Natalya's door. She closed her eyes, and breathed deeply, and willed herself not to run away that very moment and just forget the whole thing had ever happened. Although she was already quite comfortable with Natalya, and they already were a couple, she was afraid something would happen that night, and cause their newfound relationship to come crashing down.

Opening her eyes, she took one last relaxing deep breath, and knocked on the door. When no one answered, she wandered back down the hallway, and into the living-room of sorts, of their floor. Each floor of the tower had one. Looking at the wall, she checked the small clock hanging there. She frowned, and went back to Natalya's door. She was on time, and Nat had said that she would be there.

Maybe she didn't hear her? She raised her hand, and knocked on it again, harder than before. No one came to the door, but she swore she heard some sort of movement coming from inside. Curiously, the ex-mage pressed an ear to the door.

She was right. She did hear something. Listening closely, she could pick up traces of a conversation. She was relieved when she heard Natalya's muffled voice.

"Are you sure this looks okay? I mean- OW! Hey! What're you doing with that? Let go, it hurts!"

Her eyes widened. Nat was in trouble. Serras slowly reached for the doorknob, and was about to barge in, but stopped as she heard another voice.

"I'm trying to help you, that's what I'm doing. And it wouldn't hurt so much, if you would just stay still!" Serras nearly laughed, as she heard Lizzie's tone. The redhead was known for her patience, but clearly, it was growing thin. At least the Despair girl wasn't in danger. But what were they doing in there?

"And Sweet elemental lords, YES! For the millionth time, you look great!" Serras' eyes brightened, and a shrewd smile worked itself onto her face, as she stepped away from the door. So Lizzie was merely helping her get ready that was all!

Smoothing her slightly wrinkled clothes, she combed through her hair a few times. She brushed off the imaginary dust on herself, and rapped sharply on the door, many times, making sure that they would hear her.

There was an audible gasp behind the thick wood, and she heard an uncharacteristically high pitched Natalya, squeal "SHE'S HERE!"

"Hush up! She might hear you!" Lizzie hissed. The Granemorian couldn't help but laugh inwardly. If only they knew...

The door opened slightly. Craning her neck forward, she attempted to peer inside, when Lizzie poked her head out, stepping on any chance she had of seeing what was going on. "She'll be out in just one minute." Lizzie said cheerfully, although looking frazzled. Closing the door again, Serras sighed, and shook her head. Back to square one.

-10 minutes later-

_28...29...30..._

She was getting so bored; she had resorted to counting the tiles on the ground, the only surface on their floor that was not either wood or stone. A sudden bang from inside the room, along with a loud "Holy!-"cut off her steady pace.

"Uh, is everything alright in there?" Serras called to them, as she reached out for the doorknob. Before her fingers could make contact with the cool metal, the door opened, and this time Natalya stepped out. "No, nothings wrong, nothing at all Serras...Serras?"

Serras didn't answer. She just stared at Nat. There was something...different, about her. And she wasn't talking about the definite 'Not-Natalya' type clothes, or what other things Lizzie had done, but...something, which she couldn't quite put her finger on.

"Serras?"

Said person shook her head, and smiled. "Uh, sorry...my mind sort've wandered off for a moment." She paused, before hesitantly adding in, "You look...different."

Obviously, That wasn't the right thing to say, because Natalya's calm appearance dropped, leaving her looking nervous and as harried as before. "You don't like it?" She asked flatly.

"Oh, no, no! I love it, honestly!" Serras said quickly. Natalya looked suspiciously at her, but she could tell that the other woman was definitely telling the truth, thereby wiping away all her fears.

"Let's go then." She said, flashing Serras a genuine smile. Serras smiled back, and the two headed off.

-

Lizzie brushed herself off, as she stepped out of Nat's closet. Natalya had 'accidently' pushed her in, after she couldn't wait any longer. Lizzie didn't mind too much; if she were her, she would've done the same thing.

Holding her wrist up to her mouth, she spoke into the watch-communicator-portal thing. "Get ready; they're coming."

With that, she closed her connection to whomever she was speaking too, and proceeded to run out of the tower, to get ready for phase 2.

-

Well, I'm splitting this into 3 parts, or else it would be too long. Hope you likes it so far.


	2. The Date

Phase two: The Date

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Okay, so here's the second part of 'Night Out'. I hope that everyone will enjoy. Just for reference, this takes place after 'To My Love' and a little before 'Nothing like Frostval'

Disclaimer – I own Rayne, Lizzie, Trip, and Blaze. Xenolord owns Maria, Natalya, and Serras. Flame owns Shiro, and Armor. Flame and I both own Felix and Faust. All others, we don't own.

By the way everyone, I'm sorry this took so long. I've been rather busy, and I had nearly no time to work on this. But I hope you enjoy it.

* * *

"_Get __ready__; they're coming."_

"Alright everyone, get into your positions! They're coming!" Rayne shouted.

Thanks to Lizzie's stalling (she actually was helping Natalya, she was just purposely dragging it out), they had had just enough time to organize everyone. As Maria and Rayne saw it, as they were the leaders of the operation, nearly everyone that was helping them were some sort of warrior anyways, so it was to be handled like, and with the seriousness of, a military mission.

As it was night, there were sure to be creatures looking to come into town and catch someone unawares. That was why they had the night patrol. But, there just happened to be a full moon that night. More than likely the creatures would be much more active, and there would be even more than usual trying to get in, and wreak havoc.

So the bulk of their forces had gone into keeping the monsters out. Those who were left over had been separated into different, small groups.

Trip, with some of the acquaintances of the Natalya and Serras,) such as the people who occasionally fought along side them, those who they had trained, the less recognizable people to them, those who they wouldn't recognize in a heartbeat) formed the decoy group. If anything did manage to bother the two, they would deal with it.

Lizzie, and some of the more stealth-trained people, made up the intelligence squad. They would shadow them, and report to Rayne and Maria where they were going, what they were doing, and if there were any signs of danger.

"Is everyone ready?" Maria asked Rayne, as she surveyed the mass of people. Rayne nodded. "Everyone's taken their positions; now, you just have to go join Lizzie and the others." After a coin flip, it had been decided that Rayne would oversee and help out at the edge of town.

"Right then." With that, and a turn, Maria had disappeared amongst the rest of the people.

* * *

Natalya and Serras walked down the main street of Battleon.

"Cold tonight, isn't it?" Natalya commented, feeling a bit uneasy. Sure, they might've known each other for years, and spent time with each other, but never in a situation like this.

Serras smiled as cheerfully as she could. "Well...it is November. And Frostval is going to come soon." As she spoke, little clouds of steam rose from their breath. Natalya nodded. "I guess you're right."

They walked for silence for a few moments, before she casually asked "So...where are we going?"

She had been expecting the normal look that Serras got whenever she was asked one of those types of questions the 'Oh damn, I totally forgot!' look. So it came as a total surprise, when instead of that face, received in a mock regal tone,

"Actually, we're going to one of the finest eateries in town, where we shall enjoy a luxurious meal, with only the finest of foods."

"So were heading over to that little restaurant just a little off of Main Street?"

Natalya bit back her laughter, as the smirk on her date's face dropped. "Well...yes. But it sounds so much worse when you say it like that." She mumbled. Natalya smiled. If the tension hadn't broken already, that line had done it.

Natalya smiled. "You know what?"

"What?" Serras mumbled, pouting over the loss of her moment.

Natalya stopped walking, leaned over, and grasped one of Serras' hands in her own. "I think 'The Silver Spoon' is just fine." She said smiling widely, as Serras beamed.

They had yet to let go of each others hands when they reached their destination.

* * *

Lizzie watched them from the rooftop of the Inn, the darkness providing the perfect cloak for her. She was staring at the two as they walked down the street, with her wrist up to her mouth, muttering into her portal-com (yes, I now I called it portal matic, but I'm changing the name)

"...no, nothing seems wrong so far, they seem to be making small talk." She smiled; everything seemed to be going well. Her smile morphed into a small frown, as she saw them stop suddenly in the middle of the street. "Oh, no, wait..."

"_What's wrong?" _Rayne's voice crackled over the portal-com.

"They...they seemed to have stopped walking...should I send one of them to get a bit closer?"

_"No...If they don't start walking in 5 minutes, then send someone__ to see if anything has gone wrong__."_

"Oh, wait, they started walking again, and-"

_"And? And what? Lizzie?" _

Had Lizzie been able to see Rayne, she would have seen that the squeal that came through the portal-com was actually enough for Rayne to reel backwards, clap one hand over her ear, and hold the portal-com away from her.

"Aww, they're holding hands Rayney! It's so sweet!"

"Yes_...yes, Lizzie, I can understand that it is, but...do you know where they're going?"_

"Oh...yes, sorry..." She sweat dropped. Holding up a small, clear, stone, she stared at it, and began to talk. "So, has anybody been able to find out where there going?"

At once, the stone turned opaque, and a voice began to emanate from it. "I've heard that they're going to go to 'The Silver Spoon' for dinner, but Serras is keeping the rest a surprise, I assume."

Lizzie nodded. "Thanks." She said, and the stone became clear again. "Did you get that Rayne?"

_'Yup.'_There was a pause; Lizzie knew the young commander was thinking of what to do next.

'_Lizzie, do you think that you, and the rest of your group could get into there before them? Maybe send a few people to observe them, w__hile you and the people with more...notable cooking experience handle the dinner?_

"Right on it love."

* * *

As Natalya and Serras entered the restaurant, someone came immediately, and led them to a table. Battleon was more advanced than other towns, you see. Even dining-wise.

"You know, I have a feeling that I've seen that waiter somewhere before...I just can't tell where..." Natalya mumbled to Serras.

Serras shrugged, but smiled, as they both settled into their seats. "I haven't been here too many times, but I really do like it. Especially how the cooks will sometimes take special requests."

Natalya raised an eyebrow. "They take requests?"

Serras nodded. "Yup. Just like they'll do for us tonight."

"But how did you get that done?"

"I saved the owner from being robbed and killed by a bandit." She said. "Do you want a special meal, or order off the menu?"

Natalya picked up the menu in front of her, and scanned it for a moment. After a moment, she pointed to one of the items on the list. "I'd like that one, but could you get them to change it up just a bit?" Serras craned her neck, so she could see what she was talking about, and nodded. "Sure. I'll go tell the chef; be back soon!"

Getting up from her seat, she smiled charmingly at Nat and picked up her menu, before heading off to the kitchen, unaware of the two pairs of eyes watching her.

* * *

"That lucky little brat..."

"Riles, she's older than you."

"I'm still taller than her, Yuki."

Yuki and Riles sat watching Serras. Instead of turning to the kitchen doors, she paused, and headed towards the washrooms.

"But it's not fair! I love this place, and we never ever get any special orders!" Riles pouted, dark blonde hair falling into her eyes.

Yuki couldn't help but smile at how cute she looked. "Well, you know what? Next time, when the owner is in danger of dying, how about you and I go save him, so that we can get free orders too?"

Riles looked up, staring into Yuki's eyes through her glasses."You promise?" She asked, a half smile on her face.

"Cross my heart." Yuki said solemnly, despite the grin beginning to wriggle its way onto her face.

Their moment was suddenly cut off, as Serras reappeared.

"Oh hell..." Riles mumbled, fumbling around for her own stone. Yuki, ever prepared, pulled hers out. "Lizzie, Serras is currently heading your way. She wants a special order for her and Nat." She said, very quickly, as Serras began to make her way to the kitchen door.

* * *

Lizzie's eyes widened, as she heard Yuki's message. '_Lizzie; whatever you do, don'__t let them spot you, or give them enough time to recognize the people you are with.__' _She could hear Rayne's calm voice in the back of her head, repeating what the raven-haired woman had said earlier.

"Alright everyone" She said; most of the people were either working with her, or were actual cooks, who were in on the plan. "Serras is coming. Whatever you do, do not give the plan away. All those who are part of the group, don't give her a chance to recognize you. Got it?" Everyone nodded, but before anything else could be said, Serras walked in, causing people to hurriedly go back to their task.

Serras scanned her eyes over the chef's, busy at work. She looked carefully for whoever seemed to be the head chef.

Spotting him, she smiled, and walked over, tapping him on the shoulder. He looked away from one of the other chef's dishes, and turned to her. He frowned, about to ask her what she was doing there, but stopped, as she realized who it was. "Ah, yes; Ms. Nerra!" He smiled. "What can I get you, hmm?"

"Well, I was wondering if I could ask for this-" She pointed to an item on the menu. "With some alternatives?"

"Of course." He answered. "Now, let's see, the cook who usually makes that is her." He looked around his kitchen for a moment, before spotting the cook, and pointing at her, without a second thought.

"Thank you." She said politely, then walked to them. He smiled again, pleased with himself, before he remembered who was in charge of that for the night;

Lizzie.

* * *

Lizzie stiffened up, as she saw Serras walk in. She relaxed, as she head towards the head chef. He looked around for a moment, before pointing at her, letting Serras come near. She slapped herself on the forehead quickly, and thought 'I'm going to have a long talk with that man after this.'

"So, you're the one who takes care of this order?"

Lizzie gulped as she heard the question. Thankfully, she had tied her orange-red hair into a bun, and put on a hat before, just in case. Keeping her face down, and not letting Serras see her face fully, she spoke.

"Yep. That's me." She said, adopting a drawl that she had heard people down south use when she was sent on a quest, and deepening her voice slightly.

She sighed inwardly when Serras didn't recognize her. "Listen, since you're in the process of preparing more, could you make it with some alternatives, like instead of the meat for this being pork, could you make it beef? And take out the..."

Lizzie listened carefully, as Serras made her every request.

"So can you do the please?"

"No problem."Lizzie drawled, taking out all the ingredients she needed, and placing them on her space.

Serras smiled. "Thanks. It's kind of important, and I want to make sure everything goes well, because it's my first date with someone I really, really like."

"I know." Lizzie answered cheerfully, and froze when she realized what she said. Looking out of the corner of her eye, Serras was looking at her oddly.

"How did you-"

"Uh...I've-I've been through it myself." She said quickly. "Now you go on and go on back to Natalya, y'hear!?"

Before Serras had answered, Lizzie had grabbed her by her shoulders, and pushed her out the kitchen door.

Serras couldn't help but wonder, as she headed back to the table,

"How did she know it was Nat?"

* * *

The orange-haired woman sighed in relief, and slumped up against the counter. "That was a close one." she muttered, as she swiped her had over her forehead.

"Now, to get started on their dinner..."

* * *

The waiter stepped out of the kitchen, holding aNatalya and Serras' orders. He calmly, yet cautiously walked over to their table.

"One for you." He said, as he walked behind Natalya, and placed her meal in front of her, brushing her collar ever so slightly.

"And one for you." He said again to Serras, as he repeated what he had done earlier.

"Enjoy your meal." He smiled, as he turned around, and walked back to the kitchen, a small smile on his face.

Miss Lizzie would be pleased.

* * *

As soon as they had finished their dinner, Lizzie and her partners had hightailed it out of there. Thanks to the 'waiters' making sure to go by their table often, and the little microphones that they had slipped onto their collars, things would run much smoother.

They had taken to the rooftops once again, as Natalya and Serras went back on the move.

"_So where are we going now?"_ Lizzie heard the elder Despair sister say.

_"You'll see." _Serras replied, a hint of excitement in her tone.

As Natalya, Lizzie, and her troupe followed Serras, it became evident where they were going.

The trees snowed gold, yellow, orange, and red leaves, as they all entered the tiny forest, separated from the main one surrounding the town, within it's boundaries. The full moon that hung in the air shone moonlight down onto the visible parts of the skeleton of the trees, leaving a bluish-black shadow.

As Lizzie realized that the buildings wouldn't give them anymore cover, she motioned to the others to jump onto the sturdier, larger trees, with more leaves than the others.

"Wow Serras..." Natalya breathed, watching the leaves scatter about, before turning, and seeing the small smile on the redhead's face. "I found this in the summer while I was taking a walk around. I come here a lot at night, but I've never been here before during autumn. Do you like it?"

"Definitely." She nodded. They began to walk around, side by side, admiring the colours and the cool night air.

As they walked, Natalya stole small glances at Serras.

If you told her a year before that she would be doing this, Natalya would have laughed in your face, and told you to go ask the Medic to see if you had any head injuries. But there she was.

It was somewhat surreal. No one believed that Serras was what she was today. Hell, eight years ago, she was possessed by an evil being, that nearly destroyed the town, and almost killed everyone. Then again, Natalya did play Drakonnan for a while. She wasn't particularly proud of that, and it put a huge burden on her shoulders. She was positive that Serras had the same feeling.

At that moment, Natalya became proud. Not of who she was before, but proud of Serras. That she had began to redeem herself, by protecting, and saving people, even if it never would be enough. She was proud that she had adapted, and lived in a town, where she knew barely anyone, and her familiars she knew had left a long time ago, but she still continued to forge on. She was brave.

And Natalya realized, that that had to be the trait the she loved most about her.

"What are you thinking about?" Serras' words broke her out of her thought.

"About you." The words slipped out of her mouth without thought, and even in the dim lighting, Nat could see the faint trace of a blush.

The wind blew at that moment, and the scattered leaves rustled around, providing the perfect cover for Lizzie's, and the rest of her troupes 'aww.'

"Serras?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you for asking me out."

"You're welcome." Serras walked in front of Natalya, and placed a light, chaste kiss on her lips, where she could feel the smile that Nat had, as she returned it.

As they reached the end of their walk (which had been all around the edge of the mini-forest)Natalya asked, "So...is this the end of our night?"

"Well, I was actually thinking of doing one more thing but..." Serras looked away. "It's only if you're up to it."

"What is it?"

"Well..." Serras leaned up ever so slightly, and began to whisper in her ear.

* * *

"They want to do _what_?" Rayne said in disbelief, staring at the portal-com.

"_Don't ask me, that's just what I heard." _ Lizzie responded, the same disbelief in her voice.

Rayne shook her head. "I always thought that both of them were one lycan short of a pack."

She turned around, and beckoned for Maria.

"What is it?" She asked making sure that the creatures weren't breaking through their ranks.

Rayne leaned up, and muttered something to the older woman.

"They want to WHAT?" She yelled, staring at the young commander.

"That's what I said." Rayne shrugged. "I'm just relaying what Liz said she heard them say.

"Well...alright."

Maria ran back into the fray. A few minutes later, some unidentified monsters broke through the ranks, and headed into town, running down the main street, where they we're met by two figures.

Natalya and Serras stood, with standard Guardian blades at their sides, they're outing clothes replaced for full Guardian armour.

With a laugh and a nod at each other, they raced head first towards the intruding monsters.

-


	3. The Aftermath

The Aftermath

-

Disclaimer – Xenolord owns Maria, Natalya and Serras, I own Lizzie, Trip, Rayne, and Blaze.

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Maria Despair smiled, as she walked down the halls of the Guardian Tower that morning. Last night's mission had been a successful, and it seems that everything had gone perfectly.

"Good morning." She greeted to everyone who walked by her. They looked at her oddly, before returning her greeting. Maria wasn't a morning person you see.

She walked along the corridors, and up a few staircases, before stopping at a certain door. She held up her hand to knock, but instead, just barged in, strode over to the window, and threw the shutters open, before turning to her sister.

"Wakey wakey, eggs and bakey!" She sang to her older sister, who was sitting up and rubbing her eyes.

Nat stretched and yawned. "Good morning." She said.

"Hmm. You're rather cheerful this morning. I actually didn't have to drag you out of bed kicking and screaming today." Maria arched an eyebrow, and sat down on her bed. "Would that have anything to do with Serras?"

"Yeah." Natalya smiled and sighed happily. "We had a great time last night. Dinner, a walk through a forest, some monster slaying..."

"I know." Maria said nonchalantly, before realizing her mistake. Natalya stared at her, confused. "What do you mean, you know?"

"Well, I...uh...y-you told me about it last night." She tried. The elder Despair shook her head. "No, I didn't talk to you last night."

A thoughtful look came upon her face. "Come to think of it, I didn't even _see _you last night. Or Rayne, or Lizzie, or Blaze, or anyone else. Usually, you would have all been mobbing me for details."

She turned to Maria, who was smiling sheepishly. "Err...coincidence?"

"Coincidence my foot!" Natalya suddenly yelled. "You were following me!"

"Well, it wasn't just me." Maria said defensively, holding her hands up in front of her.

The other woman suddenly swung her legs over, and got out of her bed. "Who else was with you?" She growled.

"Um...Rayne, Lizzie, Trip, Blaze...and about everybody else you and Serras know?"

"You were following us!" She shouted, making a sudden lunge for her little sister, who rolled out of the way, and jumped off of the bed, and dashed out the room. "We we're just trying to help!"

On her way out, she saw Rayne coming the opposite way. "RUN FOR IT!" She screeched. Rayne looked confused, until she saw Natalya barrelling out of the room, looking mad as hell. She immediately turned tail, and began to run, away from Nat, alongside Maria.

Natalya's scream of "Get back here!" Could be heard all over the tower that day.

The end.


End file.
